China Stock Markets Grow Closer Together

Imagine if Americans were barred from investing in Facebook, Verizon and IBM, and had to smuggle money into Canada to buy their shares.

That has effectively been the situation for Chinese investors, with iconic local companies such as Tencent, China Mobile, and Lenovo listed only in Hong Kong. To get money into the semi-independent territory, corporations and wealthy individuals find ways—often illicit—around China's capital...